Umma: Did you mean...?

Nisaba (also Naga, Se-Naga, Nissaba, Nidaba, and associated with Nanibgal) is the Sumerian goddess of writing, accounts, and scribe of the gods. Although her name is commonly given as Nidaba...

Mesopotamian Naru Literature was a literary genre, first appearing around the 2nd millennium BCE, which featured a famous person (usually a king) from history as the main character in a...

The Quran (also written Qur’an or Koran), revealed in the 7th century, is the sacred book of Islam, following in the tradition of the Abrahamic faiths, with the Torah as the sacred book of Judaism and the New Testament as the sacred book...

Local trade in ancient Mesopotamia began in the Ubaid period (circa 6500-4000 BCE), had developed into long-distance trade by the Uruk period (circa 4000-3100 BCE), and was flourishing by...

Sargon and Ur-Zababa is a Sumerian poem, date of composition unknown, relating the rise to power of Sargon of Akkad (reign 2334-2279 BCE), founder of the Akkadian Empire. The work is classified...

Originality in literary compositions in the ancient world did not carry the same weight and value as it does today. In recent centuries, authors have been applauded...

The Kish Tablet, illustration by José-Manuel Benito, July 2006. The Kish Tablet, from Tell al-Uhaymir, Iraq, is among the oldest known inscriptions using proto-cuneiform symbols. Before this, writing...

The Battle Scene from the Stele of the Vultures, created to commemorate the victory of Lagash over Umma c. 2600 BCE. Louvre, Paris.

Stele of the Vultures fragments, dated to the Early Dynastic III Period (2600-2334 BCE), commemorating the victory of the city of Lagash over Umma. Louvre, Paris.

Warfare was an essential part of the Akkadian Empire, especially under its conquering founder Sargon, and his grandson the god-king Naram-Sin. Their armies were the source of their power. But they were...